Dell, BlackBerry highlight tech gains

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Tech stocks kicked off the week with broad gains Monday as the back-and-forth over Dell Inc.’s proposed plans to go private claimed some of the attention of the tech sector following the latest move by activist investor Carl Icahn.

Reuters

BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins holds up a prototype of the BlackBerry 10 smartphone in 2012.

Ichan said his Icahn Enterprises L.P. had signed a confidentiality agreement with Dell
US:DELL
and will begin reviewing information related to the PC maker’s plans to go private in a deal that values Dell at $13.65 a share, or $24.4 billion.

Icahn has said he believes Dell is worth more and wants the company to pay a $9-a-share dividend if the deal is voted down by Dell’s shareholders.

Dell’s shares rose 1.5%, or 21 cents, to close at $14.37.

BlackBerry Inc. shares
BBRY, +0.00%
surged more than 14% to $14.90 after the company set a March 22 release date for its new Z10 smartphone. The Z10 will cost $199 with a two-year contract with AT&T Inc.
T, -1.02%

Apple Inc.
AAPL, +1.72%
turned its back on a downgrade by CLSA analyst Avi Silver to rise 1.4% and close at $437.87. Silver trimmed his rating on Apple’s stock to outperform from buy and lowered his price target to $505 a share from $575, blaming “weaker iPhone trends” for his new rating and price target.

Shares of Google Inc.
GOOG, +0.42%
ended the day with a gain of $3.30 to close at $834.82. Before the market opened, RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahaney raised his price target on Google’s stock to $950 a share, from $840.

Mahaney also raised his price target on Yahoo Inc.
US:YHOO
to $24 a share from $22, mostly due to the rising value of Yahoo’s stake in Yahoo Japan. Yahoo shares shed 1% to trade at $22.71.

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